Unbreakable Vows
by TheFreelancerSeal
Summary: We promised we'd find each other again, on the other side of our war. It's a vow I can't break, but my darling Takumi, I don't know if I can bear to keep it.


**A/N:** So, you may remember this story from New Year's Day, depending on if you got the alert. After reading it a few times, I just didn't think it was good enough. Then again, if you know me well enough, you'll know I never think anything I do is good enough. XD But I rewrote it, and re-re-wrote it and for the heck of it, I rewrote it some more. But now, I think I have something pretty decent.

Once again, a big thank you to all my readers for your support. Bigger thanks go to The Erudite for his impeccable beta reading and for putting up with me in general.

And without further ado, my latest story and first Takumi/Camilla piece.

* * *

**Unbreakable Vows**

I think fondly of you and our days in Askr, my darling Takumi. We fought many battles together against Embla, Múspell, even the realm of the dead. We promised to look after each other, but it wasn't long until we promised something else too. Remembering the day I became your wife makes me smile. You looked so adorable standing in front of Prince Alfonse with the Askran sun on your precious face. My knees still buckle when I think of how strong and determined you sounded when we took our vows. It was the happiest day of my life.

But happiness is fleeting; life in Nohr teaches you that quickly. When I was with you, I could forget. Then the day came when Askr's wars ended, and we had to return to our world and the war waiting for us.

Darling, your words follow me everywhere. "I'll find you again. I promise you, Camilla, we will find each other again, and if our families won't accept us, we'll run away together."

The way you said my name and squeezed my hands made me want to believe it was possible, that we could have a life, a home, and perhaps even a beautiful family. I couldn't do anything that day except smile and nod, even though I knew it would never be more than a dream. We sealed that vow with a kiss, just like when we pledged to love, honor, and cherish each other, "until death do us part."

And it was a promise I wish we'd never made, because nothing will allow me to break it. Oh, my love, I miss you. My heart aches for you, Takumi. I clutch my ring against my chest and wish it was you I held. If I could fly to you, I would climb on my wyvern's back right this minute. There's no place I would rather be than with you again, but now, aboard a ship bound for Hoshido, a ship carrying the vanguard of the Nohrian army, I'd rather plunge a knife through my heart than keep our vow.

I've spent so many nights searching for a way to break it. Attacking her birth family weighs heavily on poor Corrin; it's in her eyes. Leading this invasion is the last thing she wants, and Xander is weary of this war already. But I can't appeal to them to stop this. Corrin says we must conquer Hoshido for the future of Nohr. As for my brother, he'd order an entire company of his best troops into the Bottomless Canyon if he thought it would please Father and bring back the man he was. For that matter, I can't risk word reaching Garon's ear that I oppose this war. Make no mistake, I am no coward. I'd march right into his throne room and tell him I won't have anything more to do with his madness. For you, my love, I'd risk anything: life in chains, torture, or even death. But I wouldn't be the only one to suffer. Xander could manage, but how could I leave Leo, Elise, and my sweet Corrin alone?

Besides, even if I simply threw myself into the sea—and I've considered it—nothing would spare you. Hoshido will still fall, and while the thought of finding you again breaks my heart, the fate that awaits you is enough to freeze my blood. You don't know what I've seen, the terrible things Garon allows. The thought of you dying cold and alone in some Nohrian dungeon or butchered at the hands of men like Hans is too horrible for me to imagine.

I won't abandon you to that fate. I don't know if my heart can bear it, but for your sake, I'll find you again. I wipe away my tears; you shouldn't see me cry when we meet. Do not fear, my love; it will be quick. I'll hold you close, let you rest your head in my lap one more time, and comfort you until the end. I'll see you're buried with all the honor my husband deserves, not kept like some gruesome war trophy.

Then, my darling Takumi, we will find each other on the other side of this world, and no one will ever keep us apart again.

That is one vow even fate won't stop me from keeping.

* * *

**A/N:** If you liked this story and this couple, I strongly suggest checking out some excellent pieces on AO3 - namely, _There's No Place I'd Rather Be_ and of course, the piece that inspired mine, _On the Other Side of Another War_. I loved both of them so much, I had to name drop them into my story. But seriously, they portray Takumi/Camilla in ways I can only dream of. And if you find yourself over there, check out _Scars of the Past_ too.


End file.
